Why not sleep facing north?.

Growing up in India, I used to wonder why my grand parents  strictly observed to point the pillow to east  or west direction but never to the  North Direction. I used to ridicule them as a religious superstition, untill I went to college to study Biochemistry and the the effect of magnetism on living organisms. I came across Magnetoception or magnetoreception, a sense which allows an organism to detect a magnetic field to  perceive direction, altitude or location. Not much studies are done with human, but with animals, birds and even bacterial cells are shown to be affected by magnetic fields.

Even Magnetic influence are different in Northern and Southern hemispheres. The computer monitor you are using with your computer may be affected by which hemisphere of the earth you are in.

In another theory, the researchers claim that the effect comes from the red blood cells clumping together, mostly in a line, like box cars on a train. The blood cells clump as in the picture  and then try to squeeze through capillaries. There are arguments that our hemoglobin iron is not ferromagnetic.

Whatever could be the reason, one thing is sure that there is a chance for the Earth's magnet field to have an effect on our body cells, or our blood cells or our brain cells. Sleeping eight hours every night could have long term effects either in body physiology or in brain functioning. 

Apart from low stress factor, many brain diseases like Parkinson's, dementia and Alzheimer's disease diseases were less in ancient India, due to this 8 hours of sleeping by facing in the right direction. We are sure in few years from now (Aug 2013), some scientist will do a research on this fact and validate the Truth like other facts of Ancient Indian healthy life style.

While sleeping keep the head towards east or west but not to the north direction. Sleeping parallel to the magnetic field of the earth (north south) might give sleeping disturbances and bad dreams. So keep the brain perpendicular to the Earth's Magnetic Field.

  So not only at home but also even in a hotel room, mind the direction of your pillow to orient your body to the right magnetic field.

Note: Since the magnetic field is different in Southern Hemisphere, best is to face east or West and avoid south and North wherever you are, till modern Science throws more light on this topic.